Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $34.53, but opened at $30.60. Vital Farms shares last traded at $31.12, with a volume of 963,748 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on VITL. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $53.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Benchmark assumed coverage on Vital Farms in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Vital Farms from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Friday, December 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price target on the stock. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Farms currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.64.

Vital Farms Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.03 and a beta of 1.06. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $35.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.04.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.06. Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 20.19%. The firm had revenue of $198.94 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.35 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.16 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vital Farms

In other news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 9,667 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.39, for a total transaction of $429,118.13. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 666,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,568,578.51. This represents a 1.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 25,000 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.17, for a total transaction of $829,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 6,391,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $211,995,772.30. This trade represents a 0.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 64,667 shares of company stock worth $2,245,268 over the last quarter. Insiders own 21.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,863,872 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,262,000 after purchasing an additional 432,848 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Vital Farms by 13.9% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,362,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,218,000 after buying an additional 287,718 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 1.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,315,706 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,291,000 after buying an additional 39,361 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Vital Farms by 35.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,687,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,017,000 after acquiring an additional 444,402 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Vital Farms by 23.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,377,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,692,000 after acquiring an additional 258,092 shares during the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, Inc, a food company, provides pasture-raised products in the United States. It offers shell eggs, butter, hard-boiled eggs, and liquid whole eggs. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.